Gotye

Among the big GRAMMY nominees this year there’s one stand out: the fiddle. Or the violin if you’re not feeling all that country. From Album of the Year nominees Mumford & Sons, fun. and Jack White to Song of the Year nominee Ed Sheeran, loads of GRAMMY nominees couldn’t have done it this year without a string section.

It was hard to go anywhere in 2012 without hearing Gotye’s “Somebody That I Used To Know.” It comes as no surprise the track has been nominated for Record of the Year and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance at the 55th GRAMMY Awards.

First they tackled Gotye’s “Somebody That I Used To Know” using five hands and only one guitar, which has earned them over 143 million views. Now they’re recreating the synth sounds of Taylor Swift’s “I Knew You Were Trouble” with just their mouths.

Everyone’s got an opinion, so we’ve pulled together the #1 songs at the top of the best music lists in 2012 for your compilation of the very best songs of the year. Amazingly this year several outlets picked the same songs — lots of Carly Rae Jepsen and Kanye West with a surprising number of nods to Usher.

Gotye took the radio airwaves by storm this year with “Somebody That I Used To Know.” The elaborate body-painted music video is an artistic piece within itself so after numerous fans sent the singer their own artwork he decided it was time for it all to see the light of day.

Looking for that perfect party playlist for your kinda fancy holiday party? We’ve got what you need! From Blink 182 covering a popular ’70s sitcom theme to DJ Z-Trip cutting up classic rock, here are ten tunes to keep any cocktail party hopping.